There is a trend of discussion after the content of the Barrow Administration Draft Constitution leaked before its publication in the Gazette. Many critics have started to compare its content with the CRC Draft Constitution.
Foroyaa had alerted the nation of the fact that Supplement “B” of the Gambia Gazette of 14th August 2024 had not been published. This notwithstanding, the ministers of justice and information have been answering questions and were conveying to the public that there was consultation before a draft was prepared. This is causing more misunderstanding.
Consultation has to be contextualized. In any consultation there must be an objective, expected outcome and means to attain the objective and expected outcome.
The Barrow Administration Drat Constitution that all Gambians are waiting to read when published in the Gambia Gazette would not in any way be seen to be the outcome of any consultative exercise among all stakeholders in the constitution building process.
What is therefore important is to focus on what is to be done after the content is published. The executive is the policy making arm of the state. The Bills it brings to the National Assembly are just proposals and are not final. The work of constitution building would start once the text of the Barrow Administration is published in the Gambia Gazette. Gambians should then be ready to engage in constructive discussions.
